professorsheehan

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

On November 17, 2016, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan – Associate Professor of Public and International Affairs – delivered the keynote address at the annual meeting of the University System of Maryland Foundation Board of Directors. Each year one “outstanding professor” is chosen to deliver a talk on their work. Dr. Sheehan was introduced by University of Baltimore President Kurt L. Schmoke. Sheehan’s talk – Reflections on a Journey in International Relations: Faculty Roles and Responsibilities – showcased his own work on evidence-based counterterrorism policy and examined the unique obligations faculty members have to inform the public discourse and shape thinking on contemporary policy issues. Sheehan is the recipient of the 2015 University of Baltimore President’s Faculty Award for outstanding contributions relating to teaching, research, and service as well as the 2016 University System of Maryland Board of Regents Award.

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is the Director of the graduate programs in Negotiations & Conflict Management and Global Affairs & Human Security in the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore.

For additional research or media related updates or to learn more about Dr. Sheehan, follow him on Twitter @ProfSheehan or link to his research profiles.

Social Media: @ProfSheehan / @PublicAffairsUB

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

Sheehan Trending on ResearchGate After Terror Attacks in Paris

Posted in 9-11, analysis, APSA, awards and honors, baghdad, bipartisan, CIA, college of public affairs, congress, counterterrorism, data, databases, democracy, diplomacy, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, education, evidence-based, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, freedom, global, House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Terrorism and Non-Proliferation, human rights, human security, inspections, intelligence, international order, international relations, international security studies, international studies association, iraq, ISIS, israel, Ivan Sascha Sheehan, leadership, media, MI6, middle east, military, mossad, nonproliferation, nuclear, obama, policy, political science, politics, preemptive, Professor Ivan Sascha Sheehan, regime change, regime change from within, research, scholarly, securitization, security studies, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, social science, state department, suicide attacks, suicide terrorism, teaching, terrorism, think-tank, threat, war, weapons, white house with tags @ProfSheehan, @PublicAffairsUB, Afghanistan, al qaeda, College of Public Affairs, Congress, Counterterrorism, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Global Affairs and Human Security Graduate Program, Iran, Iraq, ISIS, israel, Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Middle East, Negotiation and Conflict Management Graduate Program, Policy, Professor Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Regime Change, School of Public and International Affairs, Sheehan, suicide terrorism, Taliban, Terrorism, University of Baltimore, White House on November 17, 2015 by Professor Sheehan

#Media / #News / #Scholarship / #Inquiries / #UB

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Associate Professor of Public and International Affairs, had the top trending article in Political Science on ResearchGate.net following the November 13 terrorist attacks in Paris. The paper was also the most read article in the International Security and Arms Control as well as Political Psychology sections on the site. Learn more about Dr. Sheehan’s scholarship and policy work.

Sheehan’s paper – Has the Global War on Terror Changed the Terrorist Threat? A Time-Series Intervention Analysis – was published in the leading journal Studies in Conflict and Terrorism and featured an evidence-based assessment of the effectiveness of the War on Terrorism.

Dr. Sheehan is the Director of the graduate programs in Negotiations & Conflict Management and Global Affairs & Human Security in the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore.

For additional research or media related updates or to learn more about Dr. Sheehan, follow him on Twitter @ProfSheehan or link to his research profiles.

Social Media: @ProfSheehan / @PublicAffairsUB

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

Sheehan to Speak at Syracuse University National Security Studies Conference

Posted in 9-11, afghanistan, analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, brussels, camp liberty, CIA, civil unrest, clinton, congress, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, data, delisting, democracy, deterrence, digest of middle east studies, diplomacy, dissident, DOMES, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, education, european union, evidence-based, fordow, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, freedom, fundamentalism, geneva, global, homicidality scale, hostages, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, international studies association, iran, iraq, irgc, ISA, ISIS, Ivan Sascha Sheehan, kerry, maliki, martyrdom, martyrdom operations, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, middle east dialogue, military, mossad, NCRI, netanyahu, New Orleans, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, PMOI, policy, policy studies organization, political science, politics, preemptive, Professor Ivan Sascha Sheehan, protest, qum, rajavi, regime change, regime change from within, research, sanctions, scholarly, sectarian conflict, security studies, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, shiite, social science, state department, suicide, suicide attacks, suicide missions, suicide operations, suicide terrorism, sunni, syria, tehran, terror tagging, terrorism, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, unrest, weapons, white house with tags Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Professor Ivan Sascha Sheehan on February 12, 2015 by Professor Sheehan

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan has been invited to speak at a conference – The Global Threat: Emerging Issues in National Security – hosted by the prestigious Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University on February 27-28, 2015.

Dr. Sheehan is also scheduled to speak next week at the 2015 Annual Conference of the International Studies Association (ISA) in New Orleans and the week after at the 2015 Middle East Dialogue (MED) conference hosted by the Policy Studies Organization in Washington, D.C.

For additional research or media related updates or to learn more, follow Dr. Sheehan on Twitter @ProfSheehan.

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

Sheehan to Speak at 2015 Middle East Dialogue

Posted in 9-11, afghanistan, analysis, arak, ashraf, baghdad, bioterrorism, chemical weapons, CIA, congress, counterterrorism, data, databases, democracy, digest of middle east studies, dissident, DOMES, education, evidence-based, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, fundamentalism, global, homicidality scale, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, international studies association, iran, iraq, irgc, ISA, ISIS, kerry, killing, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, middle east dialogue, murder, NCRI, New Orleans, nuclear, P5+1, paris, peace, PMOI, policy, policy studies organization, politics, protest, regime change, regime change from within, research, rouhani, sanctions, scholarly, sectarian conflict, security studies, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, shiite, social science, state department, strike, suicide terrorism, sunni, syria, teaching, tehran, terror tagging, terrorism, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, unrest, war, weapons, westphalia press, white house with tags Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Iran, Iraq, ISIS, Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Professor Ivan Sascha Sheehan, suicide terrorism on November 17, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan has been invited to speak at the 2015 Middle East Dialogue, a conference hosted by the Policy Studies Organization on February 26, 2015. The annual meeting — held at the historic Whittemore House in Washington, D.C. — attracts academics, analysts, and government officials with an interest in policy issues impacting the Middle East.

Dr. Sheehan’s presentation – “Suicide Terrorism: Competing Explanations and Policy Implications for the Middle East” – will feature the results of his forthcoming study in a special issue of the journal Clinical Innovations in Neuroscience (“Suicide Terrorism: A Critical Assessment of the Evidence”). The presentation will challenge the conventional thinking on suicide terrorism in the Political Science and International Relations literatures by examining the theoretical and empirical evidence for and against the possibility that suicide terrorists may suffer from psychopathology.

This is Dr. Sheehan’s third time presenting at the Middle East Dialogue (2013, 2014, 2015). He has also twice published in the peer-reviewed journal Digest of Middle East Studies (2013, 2014) and also in a Policy Studies Organization edited volume (2014).

In February 2015, Dr. Sheehan is also scheduled to speak at the Annual Meeting of the International Studies Association in New Orleans where he will discuss his latest study on regime change in Iran, as well as serve as a chair and discussant for other panels related to his scholarship.

Stay tuned for updates and follow Dr. Sheehan on Twitter @ProfSheehan

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

1 Comment »

SHEEHAN: What Is “Regime Change From Within?” Unpacking the Concept in the Context of Iran | Digest of Middle East Studies | Oct 14

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, ballistic missiles, camp liberty, CIA, civil unrest, clinton, college of public affairs, congress, council on foreign relations, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, data, debate, delisting, democracy, deterrence, digest of middle east studies, diplomacy, dissident, DOMES, education, european union, evidence-based, farsi, fordow, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, freedom, fundamentalism, geneva, global, haider al-abadi, hostages, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, international studies association, iran, iran policy committee, iraq, irgc, ISA, ISIS, israel, kerry, kurd, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, middle east dialogue, military, mossad, natanz, NCRI, negotiation, netanyahu, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, PMOI, policy, policy studies organization, politics, preemptive, prof. ali ansari, prof. raymond tanter, protest, qum, quoted, rajavi, regime change, regime change from within, research, rouhani, sanctions, scholarly, sectarian conflict, security studies, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, shiite, social science, state department, strike, sunni, syria, tanter, tehran, terror tagging, terrorism, the hill, think-tank, threat, turkey, u.s. foundation for liberty, university of baltimore, unrest, war, weapons, white house, wocmes, zarif with tags Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Iran, Ivan Sascha Sheehan, MEK, NCRI, PMOI, Policy, Professor Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Rajavi, Regime Change, Sheehan, Tanter on October 29, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

SHEEHAN: What Is “Regime Change From Within?” Unpacking the Concept in the Context of Iran | Digest of Middle East Studies | Fall 2014 | Vol. 23, Issue 2

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is published in the fall 2014 issue of the Digest of Middle East Studies, a peer-reviewed journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Policy Studies Organization. Dr. Sheehan’s latest study — What Is “Regime Change From Within?” Unpacking the Concept in the Context of Iran — clarifies the contested concept of regime change from within via Tehran’s organized opposition and makes contributions to the concept’s formation to increase its policy relevance and classificatory significance.

Abstract: The use of the phrase “regime change from within” has surged in recent years in media, policy, and opposition discourse, especially in relation to the Islamic Republic of Iran. But what does “regime change from within” actually mean? Is it just a script to encourage the aspirations of a people, or can it be defined with more specificity? This article argues that to be of value as a concept and the basis for articulate policy, “regime change from within” needs to be better defined. To bring greater clarity to the term, the article tries to unpack the concept by disaggregating it into three analytically separable problem components: the “regime,” “change,” and “from within.” Drawing on the case of Iran, I argue that although most of the current debate around the concept is on the “from within” component, the definitional choices that need more discussion are the “regime” and “change” aspects of the phrase.

Excerpt | What Is “Regime Change From Within?” Unpacking the Concept in the Context of Iran | Digest of Middle East Studies | F.14 | Vol. 23, Issue 2 –

[The concept of] ‘regime change from within’ has been employed for an array of very disparate processes — as a holder for democracy promotion efforts from outside a country as well as indigenous efforts that exclude outside intervention, to highlight the need for radical change and more vaguely to call for continuous reform. But to be of value as a concept and the basis for articulate policy, a term needs to have some degree of specificity of meaning, some shared consensus. Otherwise, it just becomes a proverbial “you know it when you see it” concept that is difficult to distinguish from other types of political phenomena.

To address this gap and bring greater clarity to the concept, this article looks at some of the definitional choices that need to be addressed to come to a consensus on the meaning of “regime change from within.” Using the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran, I show how different decisions about what constitutes “regime change from within” could lead to very different conceptualizations in empirical cases…

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

1 Comment »

Sheehan Published in New Book on Middle East

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, brussels, CIA, clinton, college of public affairs, conflict resolution, congress, council on foreign relations, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, data, debate, delisting, democracy, digest of middle east studies, diplomacy, dissident, DOMES, european union, evidence-based, fordow, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, freedom, global, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, iran, iraq, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, middle east dialogue, military, mossad, natanz, NCRI, negotiation, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, PMOI, policy, policy studies organization, politics, protest, rajavi, regime change, research, rhetoric, sanctions, scholarly, security studies, sheehan, social science, state department, teaching, tehran, terror tagging, terrorism, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, university of baltimore, unrest, war, weapons, westphalia press, zarif on June 19, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

New Directions in the Middle East / Edited by Mohammed M. Aman and Mary Jo Aman / Westphalia Press / ISBN/EAN13: 194147201X; 9781941472019 / 16 Jun 2014

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is published in a new book titled New Directions in the Middle East. The book presents articles based on papers delivered at the annual Middle East Dialogue held in Washington, D.C., sponsored by the Digest of Middle East Studies (DOMES) and the Policy Studies Organization (PSO), and at the Conference of the Association for Middle Eastern Public Policy and Administration (AMEPPA) held in Ifrane, Morocco. The authors suggest much needed and even radical reforms amidst a series of conflicts that include the standoff between Israel and its Arab neighbors, the role and impact of social media as empowered by technology, and citizens’ demands for political, economic, and social change. Those interested in crisis management and conflict resolution will find this a must read. The contributors represent an unusually wide variety of political and religious views and include a number who enjoy considerable standing in the Middle East.

“This exceptional work, composed of two volumes, ‘Middle East: Conflicts & Reforms’ and ‘New Directions in the Middle East’ is a magnum opus. In this book, edited by Mohammed M. Aman and Mary Jo Aman, the reader is introduced to a comprehensive and integrated erudite work addressed by a number of distinguished scholars from different disciplines dealing with the Middle East and North Africa, a most sensitive region of the world. The book identifies significant academic and public policy approaches as well as socio-economic, cultural, and political paradigms that bind together such timely topics as democracy, Islam, Islamism, sectarianism, secularism, globalism, modernity, Arab Spring, social justice, social media, leadership, women’s rights, and peace. The book offers a unique and compelling assessment of the future of the Middle East. Objectively written and eloquently presented, this book will enhance the scholarship of the Middle East and assist in the understanding the ability of political systems, government or state and non-government or civil society, in handling and managing current challenges facing the region.”

el-Sayed el-Aswad, Ph.D.
Prof. of Anthropology and Chair of Department of Sociology
College of Humanities and Social Sciences
United Arab Emirates University

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

SHEEHAN: Conflict Transformation as Counterinsurgency | Peace Review: A Journal of Social Justice | March 2014

SHEEHAN: Conflict Transformation as Counterinsurgency | Peace Review: A Journal of Social Justice | March 2014

Posted in 9-11, afghanistan, analysis, baghdad, college of public affairs, conflict resolution, conflict transformation, congress, council on foreign relations, counterinsurgency, counterterrorism, courses, data, databases, democracy, diplomacy, education, evidence-based, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, global, human rights, human security, international relations, international security studies, international studies association, iraq, ISA, media, middle east, militarization, military, obama, peace, peace and conflict studies, peace review, peacebuilding, pedagogy, petraeus, policy, politics, research, scholarly, securitization, security studies, sheehan, social science, soldier, stability operations, state department, teaching, terrorism, transformation of war, university of baltimore, war on March 17, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

/ #About / #Media / #News / #Scholarship / #Inquiries

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is published in the March 2014 edition of Peace Review: A Journal of Social Justice. Dr. Sheehan’s latest study — Conflict Transformation as Counterinsurgency — is an empirical examination of the increasing usage of conflict transformation concepts in the context of counterinsurgency doctrine. Peace Review is a peer-reviewed journal published by Taylor and Francis Group, LLC/ Routledge that addresses current issues and controversies that underlie the promotion of a more peaceful world.

Excerpt | Conflict Transformation as Counterinsurgency | Peace Review: A Journal of Social Justice | March 2014 –

…By October of 2008, Colonel Patrick Kelleher, in a report submitted to the Joint Military Operations Department at the Naval War College, had proposed that conflict transformation be embraced wholesale by the U.S. government as the primary framework and a “paradigm” for “Security, Stability, Transition and Reconstruction Operations (SSTR)” in what was now being called the “Long War” against insurgency. Borrowing from Lederach the importance of implementing a process to achieve “sustainable results” and from other influential work by Miall, Ramsbotham, and Woodhouse, he addressed the need to achieve transformation at five levels: “context transformation,” “structural transformation,” “actor transformation,” “issue transformation,” and “personal and group transformation.” But at each level, although he used the language of conflict transformation (paying attention to “basic human needs” and “empowering civil society”), he cast its intent in clearly utilitarian and prescriptive terms, such as to “win the peace,” “to establish a new domestic order,” and “to further U.S. objectives.”

Retrieve in #PDF Format – SHEEHAN: Conflict Transformation as Counterinsurgency | Peace Review: A Journal of Social Justice | March 2014

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

Sheehan to Present at 2014 International Studies Association Annual Conference

Posted in analysis, CIA, college of public affairs, counterterrorism, courses, data, delisting, democracy, diplomacy, dissident, education, evidence-based, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, freedom, global, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, international studies association, iran, ISA, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, NCRI, PMOI, policy, regime change, research, scholarly, security studies, sheehan, state department, teaching, terrorism, toronto, university of baltimore on March 17, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

International Studies Association’s 55th Annual Convention / Spaces and Places: Geopolitics in an Era of Globalization / March 26th – 29th, 2014, Toronto, Canada

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan has been invited to present in Toronto at the 2014 International Studies Association conference. Dr. Sheehan is presenting on a panel titled Terrorism: Tactics and Recruitment (International Security Studies Section). He is also chairing two panels Counterterrorism Strategies: Sources and Effectiveness (Foreign Policy Analysis Section) and Non-State Actors: Mercenaries, Pirates, and Death Squads (International Security Studies Section), as well as serving as a discussant.

The International Studies Association (ISA) has been the premier organization for connecting scholars and practitioners in fields of international studies since 1959… ISA was founded in 1959 to promote research and education in international affairs. With well over six thousand members in North America and around the world, ISA is the most respected and widely known scholarly association in this field. ISA cooperates with 57 international studies organizations in over 30 countries, is a member of the International Social Science Council, and enjoys nongovernmental consultative status with the United Nations.

Panel #1 / Panel #2 / Panel #3

/ #About / #Media / #News / #Scholarship / #Inquiries / #Program

SHEEHAN: The Ivory Tower and the Iranian Regime | Townhall.com | Commentary

SHEEHAN: The Ivory Tower and the Iranian Regime | Townhall.com | Commentary

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, ballistic missiles, CIA, clinton, congress, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, data, delisting, democracy, digest of middle east studies, diplomacy, dissident, DOMES, education, evidence-based, fordow, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, freedom, geneva, global, hostages, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, iran, iraq, israel, ivory tower, kerry, kristoff, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, military, mossad, natanz, NCRI, negotiation, netanyahu, nuclear, nyt, obama, P5+1, paris, PMOI, policy, politics, preemptive, protest, rajavi, regime change, research, sanctions, security studies, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, state department, strike, tehran, terrorism, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, unrest, war, weapons, white house, zarif on March 4, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

/ #About / #Media / #News / #Scholarship / #Inquiries

In response to Nicholas Kristof’s recent column in The New York Times, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan weighs in at Townhall.com on why scholars should examine policy issues and inform the public discourse.

As Washington looks for fresh ideas on Iran policy in the lead up to the next round of nuclear discussions in March, policymakers would be wise to examine some of the sharpest thinkers on Iran and adopt policy prescriptions informed by scholarly analyses.

The unfortunate decision to investigate banality may be the characteristic that distinguishes the contemporary ivory tower from the public forum.

But not every intellectual suffers from the affliction and some have ideas that could inform policy decisions.

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

Upcoming Sheehan Speaking Engagements

Posted in analysis, college of public affairs, contact, counterterrorism, courses, data, education, evidence-based, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, international relations, international security studies, media, pedagogy, policy, research, scholarly, security studies, sheehan, teaching, terrorism, university of baltimore on January 7, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

/ #About / #Media / #News / #Scholarship / #Inquiries

Between January and April 2014, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan will be delivering invited talks at international conferences in New Orleans, Washington DC, Toronto, and the United Kingdom. Stay tuned for details!

/ #About / #News / #Scholarship /

Sheehan to Speak at 2014 Southern Political Science Association Conference

Posted in analysis, APSA, college of public affairs, counterterrorism, courses, data, databases, education, evidence-based, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, global, international relations, international security studies, mapping, media, middle east, peace, pedagogy, research, scholarly, security studies, sheehan, SPSA, teaching, terrorism, university of baltimore on January 7, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan was invited to present in New Orleans at the 85th Annual Meeting of the Southern Political Science Association between January 9–11, 2014. Dr. Sheehan presented on a panel titled Terrorism and its Consequences where he discussed the results of a paper he published in the journal Perspectives on Terrorism, an empirical study that involved a systematic analysis of contemporary terrorism courses at 106 top-ranked universities and colleges in the United States.

Continue reading →

Sheehan Speaking at GMU on U.S. – Iran Conflict

Posted in analysis, ashraf, assad, baghdad, CIA, clinton, congress, counterterrorism, courses, covert, crimes against humanity, data, delisting, democracy, deterrence, diplomacy, dissident, DOMES, education, european union, evidence-based, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, global, gmu, hostages, human rights, human security, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, iran, iraq, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, military, mossad, NCRI, negotiation, nuclear, obama, PMOI, policy, politics, preemptive, protest, regime change, research, S-CAR, sanctions, scholarly, security studies, sheehan, state department, strike, syria, teaching, tehran, terrorism, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, unrest, war, weapons, white house on November 15, 2013 by Professor Sheehan

U.S. – Iran Conflict: Beyond the Current Discourse / School for Conflict Analysis & Resolution / Center for the Study of Gender & Conflict/ George Mason University

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan will participate in a conference on U.S.-Iran policy at George Mason University on November 23. Also speaking at the event will be:

Dr. Walid Phares, Adviser to Anti-Terrorism Caucus in U.S. House of Representatives and Co‐Secretary General of Transatlantic Euro-American Caucus Legislative Group on Counter Terrorism
Dr. Donna Hughes, Eleanor M. and Oscar M. Carlson Endowed Chair in Women’s Studies at the University of Rhode Island
Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Director of Graduate Programs in Negotiations and Conflict Management and Global Affairs and Human Security at the University of Baltimore
Dr. Ramesh Sepehrrad, Scholar and Practitioner at the School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution at George Mason University

Conflict Management in the Iranian Context: Diplomatic Engagement vs. Democratic Change from Within

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan

Presentation Abstract: Washington policymakers concerned with the Iranian regime’s human rights violations, proxy violence, and pursuit of weapons of mass destruction have grown accustomed to the false dichotomy of prolonged negotiations and tactical military strikes. Such framing treats the Iranian regime as a fixture of the Middle East landscape and forecloses any potential for democratic change from within. This discussion will challenge conventional assumptions about conflict management in the Iranian context by exploring the unintended consequences of the U.S. policy of engagement as well as the military option. The discussion will also explore the prospect of regime change from within via the organized Iranian opposition.

/ #About / #InTheNews / #Scholarship

Digest of Middle East Studies (DOMES) / Wiley-Blackwell / Policy Studies Organization / Online ISSN: 1949-3606 / Fall 2013, Vol. 22, Issue 2

Sheehan Study on Iranian Opposition Published in Digest of Middle East Studies

Posted in analysis, APSA, CIA, clinton, college of public affairs, congress, council on foreign relations, counterterrorism, courses, covert, crimes against humanity, data, databases, debate, delisting, democracy, deterrence, digest of middle east studies, diplomacy, dissident, DOMES, education, european union, evidence-based, faculty fellow, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, freedom, global, human rights, human security, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, international studies association, iran, iran policy committee, iraq, ISA, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, middle east dialogue, military, NCRI, negotiation, nuclear, obama, paris, peace, PMOI, policy, policy studies organization, politics, preemptive, protest, rajavi, regime change, research, rhetoric, scholarly, security studies, sheehan, state department, syria, teaching, terrorism, think-tank, threat, toronto, u.s. foundation for liberty, university of baltimore, unrest, war on October 11, 2013 by Professor Sheehan

Challenging a Terrorist Tag in the Media: Framing the Politics of Resistance and an Iranian Opposition Group – Digest of Middle East Studies – Fall 2013 – Vol. 22, Issue 2

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is published in the latest edition of the Digest of Middle East Studies, a peer reviewed journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Policy Studies Organization. The journal is edited by Middle East scholar Professor Mohammed M. Aman of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

Study Abstract:

Scholars have shown that media framing has a powerful effect on citizen perception and policy debates. Research has provided less insight into the ability of marginalized actors to promote their preferred frames in the media in a dynamic political context. The efforts of an exiled Iranian opposition group to get its name removed from official terror lists in the US, UK and EU provides a valuable platform to examine this problem. Using content analysis, I explore how the group promoted its frames in the opinion sections of major world news publications over nine years (2003–2012). I then examine the extent to which journalists aligned to its frames, as opposed to rival official frames, over time in the larger arena of news. The results support research showing that by nurturing small opportunities, marginalized political actors can expand media capacity and influence, but these effects are mediated at least in part by critical or focusing events that make rival frames less salient. The study sheds light on the complex relationship between activists, the government and the media. It has implications for the ability of marginalized political actors to get their frames into public discourse. It also has implications for terror tagging and media coverage of other controversial issues.

/ #About / #InTheNews / #Scholarship